By Wandoo Sombo

The old students of Command Secondary School, Kaduna, Abuja Chapter,

otherwise known as ex-commandos, have harped on sports to foster unity and support community.

The students stated this at their maiden inter-house sports competition in Abuja.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the event was organised to foster unity among members, promote healthy living, encourage networking and give back to the military environment from which they emerged.

The event featured a colourful march past by the four traditional school houses: Tiger House, Octopus/Rhino House, Dragon House, and Flying Horse House.

Speaking to newsmen at the event, the Special Guest of Honour, retired Maj.-Gen. Ayuba Haman, said the initiative was born out of efforts to bring old students together and encourage inter-generational bonding.

“The main purpose is to bring ourselves together, get to know ourselves because over the years, we have had so many sets.

“I am a member of the third set, 1984, and students have graduated up until 2025. So, it is an opportunity to meet other old students, and we hope to continue this, even with other chapters,” he said.

Haman said the choice of an inter-house sports event was deliberate, as sports had always played a unifying role in society.

“Sports is a unifying factor anywhere in the world. Sports is like a profession, and government at all levels, even individuals, need to invest in it.

“Countries like Australia, Brazil and Mexico have taken their youths off the streets into sports. If we really develop sports from the grassroots, a lot of these negative habits and attitudes we see can be curtailed.

“We can all see what happened with the Super Falcons and the glory they brought to us as a nation. So, sports is very important,” Haman said.

Also speaking, Chairman of the Abuja Chapter of the association, Mr Aaron Ogar, said the idea behind the inter-house sports was to bridge the gap between millennial and older alumni sets.

“We have this gap between the younger set and the older set, so this was set up to see how we can bridge that gap and encourage bonding among our members.

“Sports is one of the easiest ways to do that. If we look at recent happenings, especially what happened with the Super Falcons, we all celebrated when they won the Female World Cup,” he said.

Ogar said sports had great potential to engage youth productively, urging the government to structure more youth-oriented sporting initiatives.

“We don’t really need to look far; a lot of youth are actually looking for what to do.

“If the Ministry of Sports Development can put its act together, they can organise sports competitions that run from January to December and identify talents who will represent the country in future events.

“This will help unite Nigerians and address insecurity, because I believe some youths engage in crime simply because they have nothing to do. If they are properly engaged, all that will be a thing of the past,” he said.

He recalled fond memories of participating in the school’s march past during his student days.

Also speaking, an old student, Mrs Nguumbur Oritsejafor, described the experience as incredible.

“It has been such an incredible experience. We’ve been rehearsing for over two months now, learning how to march and play some games.

“It has been a huge learning experience. In terms of health, it’s been encouraging; and regarding competitiveness, it’s been exciting. This is good for unification.”

Similarly, a member of the inter-house planning committee, Ms Gumni Mallim, said the event was designed to promote fitness and honour their military roots.

 “Most people seem to connect with sports, so we chose it to help us keep fit and bond at the same time.

“Someone like me, I finished in 1994, so you can imagine my age. We chose sports to keep healthy, network, and give back to the military setting.”

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the event ended with cheers, camaraderie, and renewed commitment to future gatherings across other chapters.

NAN also reports that at the time of filling this report, Tiger House emerged winners of the badminton match while Dragon house emerged winners of the volleyball match. (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Joseph Edeh